Remember Me?
by Tearful Shadows
Summary: Ryoma is an internationally famous sports star. Any sport that he plays, he becomes good at in a month or less. While touring the world, he meets different teens that leave an impression on him. Then later on, while beginning his tennis career in Japan, he sees them all again. Will these meetings spark the old feelings between Ryoma and his old friends? Ryo/Multi! Ryoma is 15
1. Chapter 1

**A/n. So I have been watching The Prince of Tennis and absolutely fell in love with it! It got me thinking though and this is one of the things I started thinking about. What if Ryoma knew a group of people before he came to Japan in the anime? What if Ryoma was an internationally famous sports star and he met these people who become his friends in his travels? So, voila! Here it is! **

Ryoma sighed as he signed the one hundred and fifty-seventh autograph that day. He didn't understand why the stupid old man made him come to these things anyway. The fan girls (and guys but he preferred not to talk about those) were being overly irritating today since it was his last day in France.

Ryoma had been touring the world for quite some time now; in fact, since he was seven. His dad had introduced him to the world of sports at a very early age and so it came to no surprise that Ryoma was pretty good at sports. What was surprising, however, was the fact that any sport that he played; he was relatively good at within a week.

One such example was the very first sport he started playing; tennis. Ryoma's dad, Nanjiro, had given him his first tennis racket on his fourth birthday and Ryoma was hitting tennis balls over the net from the service box within the month. Ryoma could still see his dad's proud smirk in his mind.

"Ryoma!" Shaken out of this recollection by a voice he hadn't heard in quite some time, Ryoma looked up, startled, into the face of one overly energetic orange-haired youth.

"Goku! What are you doing here?" Ryoma said with an interested tone in his voice.

Goku, full name Kiyosumi Sengoku, pouted a little at his friend's tone before perking up and grinning. "I was just passing by when I heard some girls fangirling about a sports star so I decided to drop in and found you. Lucky!" he said, giving a thumbs up.

Ryoma smiled slightly. He couldn't help but to smile around Kiyosumi. He just had that kind of personality where his mood was infectious. "That still doesn't explain what you are doing in France, though." Ryoma said with a hint of a questioning tone.

"Last minute vacation before the new school term starts." Sengoku said, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. "You know how my family is."

Ryoma, in fact, did know how Kiyosumi's family was. They were the type to put things off to the last minute and then rush to get it done. They were the ultimate procrastinators. So Ryoma was not surprised at this explanation and just sighed resignedly.

"But anyway, how much longer do you have to be here for?" Sengoku asked his eyes focused on a busty blonde showing a little too much skin.

Ryoma snapped his fingers under Sengoku's nose. "Over here, Kiyosumi!" he said sharply. Once Ryoma had his attention, he said, "I will be done in ten minutes."

"I will wait for you to get done and then we can hang out, party, catch a few of these pretty French ladies." Sengoku said with an excited smile that Ryoma was quick to kill.

"Not going to happen, Goku. School starts tomorrow and I have about two hours from the time this thing wraps up until I have to catch my plane back to Japan so I won't be late for school. That means no partying and definitely no French girls." Ryoma said in a bored tone.

"Ryo! You're no fun!" Sengoku whined with a cute pout on his face.

Ryoma's lips twitched but he controlled himself and rolled his eyes. "You are such a child sometimes, Kiyosumi. Just go wait over there and as soon as I'm done, you can come back to the hotel with me and help me pack."

"Brat!" Sengoku huffed playfully before ruffling Ryoma's hair with a mischievous smile.

"Goku!" Ryoma said indignantly as Sengoku turned around and walked towards the designated waiting spot with a happy laugh.

Ryoma shook his head and let a happy smile appear on his face. He had truly missed Sengoku. It had been three years, back when Ryoma was twelve and Sengoku was fourteen, since he had met Sengoku in Ireland. His family had been vacationing and Ryoma was touring for volleyball. He had, quite literally, been taken off his feet by the happy-go-lucky fourteen year old.

"Ryoma! Time to go!" Nanjiro called.

Ryoma started and looked at the time. Ten minutes had passed! Ryoma had spent the whole ten minutes remembering his meeting with Sengoku and the time had just flown past him.

"Come on, Goku!" Ryoma said excitedly, grabbing his hand and pulling him towards the door and the car waiting outside.

"Whoa Ryo! You're sure in a hurry!" Sengoku said with an amused smile and a faint blush on his cheeks.

"Che. It's been three years since I've seen you." Ryoma said as if that explained everything and, in a way, it did.

Sengoku smiled softly and allowed the 15 year old to drag him to the Mustang parked out front of the community center they were in.

Ryoma pulled him into the car and sat him down right next to him. "You're too slow, Goku!" Ryoma teased as the car pulled away from the curb.

Sengoku stuck his tongue out at Ryoma then focused on the warm feeling in his hand. He looked down at his hand and blushed lightly when he saw that Ryoma still had his hand captured in his. Ryoma looked down at their entwined hands, after seeing his friend distracted, and blushed furiously. He pulled his hand away from Sengoku's and used his other hand to pull his cap down over his eyes.

"So." Ryoma started slightly awkwardly. "How have you been?" he asked.

"I've been alright. Just waiting for you to join my sport." Sengoku said with a smirk after noticing his friend's blush. "What about you?"

"Touring the world. I am now finished with my boxing tour so now I can start my next one when this school year is over." Ryoma said with a tired sigh. Touring the world for a different sport was incredibly taxing. He would spend his whole school year learning it then go on tour for it at the end of the year. This year's sport, however, was something that he didn't have to learn too much about. He knew all the ins and outs of this sport.

"What is your next one?" Sengoku asked, thinking that maybe he would get lucky and Ryoma would finally be in the one sport that he played.

"Dad doesn't want me telling anyone about it. It's top secret." Ryoma lied smoothly. He couldn't wait to see Sengoku's expression when he found out.

"Well, whatever it is, I hope that I can see some of it." Sengoku said happily, buying the lie hook, line, and sinker.

"Oh you will, I guarantee it." Ryoma said with a smirk right as the car pulled up to the hotel. "Let's go, Goku! I need help with all of my packing. I leave in about two hours so I can't mess around."

**A/n. And that's it for this one! Let me know what you think about this story! I hope you liked it and please review so I know your thoughts. Any guesses on who else is in Ryoma's group and what his nicknames are for them?**

**Cookies of your choice to whoever guesses any right!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/n. I got a great response to my first chapter! I want to thank everyone who reviewed, favorite, or alerted. You guys are the best. I also want to thank those that read but did not review. It still means a lot that you at least read it. **

**I had someone ask what the pairing will be. This is going to be a Ryoma/Multi. He will be paired with around 6 people I believe. Kind of like a harem of sorts. **

**I also got the comment of 'would Ryoma act like he does in the anime or be nicer to his friends?' My answer is I'm not too sure. I'm going to let Ryoma decide that as I write this.**

**I guess that is enough of my random ramblings. Thanks again for your support! Please enjoy this chapter and know that I do not own Prince of Tennis (sadly!)**

"Ryo! Look! That girl has a moustache!" Goku yelled excitedly, pointing out the window with a weird expression on his face.

Ryoma cursed as he hit his head on the bottom of the bed. He had been getting the random articles of clothing that had ended up under the bed when his friend's shout startled him.

"What are you talking about, Goku, and why are you slacking over here?" Ryoma said in irritation as he joined his friend at the window.

"Look, that girl has a moustache!" Sengoku pointed at the aforementioned girl.

"There's no way that a girl… Holy Hell! That is a moustache!" Ryoma sputtered in disgust. The girl did, indeed, have a moustache. It was one of those ones you could twirl around your finger **(like those classic French moustaches you can buy.)**

"They allow some pretty strange things here, don't they?" Sengoku asked the obvious.

"Che." Ryoma said, turning away from the window and the strange sight that was outside of it. "Now will you stop slacking off and help me finish packing! My plane leaves in an hour." Ryoma said sternly.

"Yes Ryo." Sengoku said in an abashed tone.

Ryoma nodded and turned back to finish packing his clothes away. After another 15 minutes, and more stern reminders, Ryoma was fully packed and the two teens sat resting on the hotel bed.

"So, I don't even get one hint about what your next sport is? Nothing about the school you are going to or the country?" Sengoku whined.

Ryoma sighed in irritation. Sengoku had been pestering him about it the whole time they had been packing, and he was only getting worse each time Ryoma refused.

"You get one thing and one thing only. No interrupting, asking questions, or being an annoyance got it?" Ryoma snapped. Sengoku nodded eagerly and pantomimed zipping his lips. Ryoma sighed at this and continued, "Japan."

It was silent in the hotel room for a few minutes until…

"YOU"RE GOING TO JAPAN!?" Sengoku yelled excitedly. "Maybe you will be going to school with me! I can see your sport! I'm so happy, Ryo! I get to spend a whole year with you!" Sengoku rambled excitedly. He sprung from the bed and pulled Ryoma into a bear hug.

"Goku…can't….breath…" Ryoma choked out.

Sengoku released him with a sheepish smile then started bouncing around the room happily. Ryoma sighed once more in irritation, flopping back on the bed. He remembered another hyper teen that liked to crush him in hugs.

Ryoma allowed Sengoku ten minutes of happy bouncing before snapping, "Kiyosumi!" and Sengoku fell on the bed, panting. Ryoma threw him an irritated look.

"Ne, Ryoma, you're such a party pooper!" Sengoku said breathlessly.

Ryoma grumbled and tossed a withering look at his friend.

They sat in comfortable silence for a bit. Neither one wanted to break it. They just wanted to enjoy being in each other's company again. A shrill alarm suddenly cut through the silence, making Sengoku jump five feet in the air.

Ryoma burst out laughing and hit a button on the alarm clock on the side table. The alarm died and Ryoma smiled. "Calm down, Goku. It was just my alarm. We need to get going; my plane leaves in 20 minutes."

Sengoku blushed lightly at his jumpiness.

The two teens stood there somewhat awkwardly before Ryoma stepped forward and hugged Sengoku. "I've missed you, Kiyosumi. I will see you sooner than you think." He whispered in the other's ear.

Sengoku had to restrain a shudder as Ryoma's warm breath washed over him and he hugged the slightly shorter teen **(Ryoma is around 5'6'' in this. So only a little bit shorter than the others.) **tightly.

"I've missed you, too." Sengoku breathed. He rested his head on top of Ryoma's and they stood there before another alarm, this one not so shrill, rang. Ryoma and Sengoku broke apart and Sengoku smiled.

"Later." Ryoma said with a smirk. Not waiting for an answer, Ryoma grabbed his bag and walked out of the hotel room without a backwards look.

"Goodbye…Ryoma." Sengoku said into the empty air.

*******At the airport*******

"Did you tell him? I'm sure he would have loved to know." Nanjiro asked his son as they waited for the plane to be ready to board.

"Of course not. It's more fun if he doesn't know." Ryoma said with a wicked smirk.

"Brat." Nanjiro said with a smile.

"Che." Ryoma said, pulling his cap over his eyes.

"Do you think you will see any of the others in this one?" Nanjiro asked.

"I know I will. I'll be going to school with two of them." Ryoma said with a small smile. He had kept in contact with all of his friends through letters and he knew that two of them were going to the same school he was.

"Do those two know that?" Nanjiro asked with a twinkle in his eye, already anticipating the answer.

"What do you think?" Ryoma asked. "Baka oyaji." Ryoma huffed under his breath.

"_All passengers for the Flight 203 to Japan please come to the gates. You can now board your plane."_

Ryoma slanted a look at his dad. "It's time." He said before striding towards the plane.

"Yes, it is time. I hope you're ready for the challenges that await you Ryoma." Nanjiro said before walking after his son. It was time that Ryoma acknowledged something he had been dodging around for quite some time.

The father and son boarded the plane and sat down in their first class seats. A few minutes later, the plane took off into the air. The time had come to enter back into a world he had not been part of for 5 years.

**A/n. And that's all for this one. I hope that you enjoyed it and I can't wait to hear your thoughts on this. Anyone want to take a guess as to who his other friends are? Their nicknames?**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/n. Hey guys! I feel like I've been updating a lot lately but tis the work of the devil, I fear. There is a saying that idle hands are the devil's workshop and I believe that it applies here. I simply have so much time lately in school that I can type this. I had one person guess one of Ryoma's friends correctly but it was in the form of a question so I will withhold the cookie until they guess it confidently. Did anyone notice the hint I threw in the last chapter about one of his friends?**

**I suppose I should probably throw in the disclaimer that I have been neglecting for the past two chapters. So, here it is: I do not own Prince of Tennis or its characters. The only thing I do own is what I insert.**

**Phew! Now that the stuffy junk is over we can get to the good stuff! Here is the story! Hope you like it!**

Ryoma yawned as the plane finally landed. It had been a long flight from France to Japan. Unfortunately, the image of the young lady with the moustache was still engraved in Ryoma's mind (stupid Goku!).

"Do you want to stop anywhere before we go home? We could go to the street courts, or the ramen shop, or the cheeseburger place…" Ryoma threw his dad a murderous glare.

"I want to go home and sleep the jet lag away. You will take me home and you will not tell anyone that I am home." Ryoma said venomously.

Nanjiro shrunk back a bit. Even half-dead with fatigue, his son was damn scary! "Ok Ryoma… no need to get scary." He mumbled in a placating way.

A few minutes later and they were pulling into their driveway. The two males walked in the house and Ryoma went straight past his mother and cousin and right to his room, where he collapsed on the bed in a heap. Morpheus was quick to claim the teen and he fell into a dreamless sleep.

**ZzzzZZZZzzzzZZzzzz – ZZZZzzzZzzzZzZzZZZz**

"I'm leaving and don't you dare follow me!" Ryoma snapped as he gathered his tennis bag and walked out the front door.

"Yes Ryoma." Nanjiro said meekly but Ryoma was already gone.

Ryoma walked through town, one destination in mind. He wanted to get there and play some matches, definitely hit against the backdrop.

He walked through the archway and onto the street courts, only to find them empty. Ryoma sighed. He had been hoping that someone would be there so he could play some matches.

He sat his bag down next to the backdrop and got out his favorite red racket and a tennis ball. He served a twist at the backdrop and he smacked it hard when it bounced back at his face. He slid from side to side effortlessly with an inhuman grace born from many years of playing different sports. Ryoma would have to thank his baka oyaji later for making him do dancing a few years ago.

Ryoma stiffened slightly and hit the ball hard. When it flew back at him, he cocked his head to the side and let it fly passed his head. The ball was caught effortlessly by the person standing behind Ryoma.

The person tsked. "Still as touchy as ever, I see."

"Still as creepy as ever, dear stalker." Ryoma mocked the person.

"Mou, Ryo love, you don't have to be so mean. I just wanted to see who was hitting so skillfully." The person whined. A pair of arms wrapped around his waist from behind. "Imagine my surprise when I saw it was you." He whispered in Ryoma's ear.

Ryoma had to fight down a shiver. What was it with these friends of his? They sure liked to try to evoke reactions from him, whether they are good or bad. Ryoma spun gracefully around and looked up into the sparkling grey eyes of Takahisa Kajimoto. "Why so surprised, Hisa?" Ryoma whispered huskily. "Are you glad to see me?" he purred, deciding to get a reaction of his own.

It was Kajimoto's turn to tamp down a shiver. "Of course I'm glad to see you! It's been two years! How have you been?" Kajimoto asked with a smile, hoping his voice sounded normal.

"The usual. Tired from touring, annoyed with oyaji, irritated with fangirls and guys. You?" Ryoma said with a slight crease in his brow.

"Nothing much. Waiting for the new school year to start, playing tennis; the usual." Kajimoto said airily. "I can't believe that it's been two years! What sport was it that I met you at? Baseball wasn't it?"

"Hai." Ryoma confirmed.

"You were so cute back then!" Kajimoto said with a sly smile, waiting for the reaction he expected.

"You weren't too bad yourself." Ryoma said with a smirk, shocking the older teen. Kajimoto blushed and looked away from Ryoma's mischievous golden eyes. He noticed that they were still in an embrace, rather intimately at that, so he unwound his arms from around Ryoma and took a step back, blushing harder. Ryoma was blushing lightly.

"So… what sport will it be now?" Kajimoto asked after a pregnant pause.

"I can't say. Oyaji told me not to tell anyone." Ryoma said with a slightly apologetic note in his voice.

"Is it something that I watch? Will I be able to see some of your matches?" Kajimoto asked.

"You could say that, I suppose." Ryoma said with a teasing smirk.

"Mou, Ryo! You are being so vague!" Kajimoto said with a pout.

Ryoma's smirk widened. "You still go to Jyousei Shounen?"

"Of course, why?" Kajimoto asked curiously.

"Just wanted to make sure you didn't transfer out of the country or something right when I get here." Ryoma said innocently.

Kajimoto hmmed and Ryoma laughed happily. "You still wear it?"

Kajimoto was confused until Ryoma reached towards his neck and cradled the necklace there gently.

"I haven't taken it off since you gave it to me two years ago." Kajimoto said with a soft smile. "I still remember the day you gave it to me."

_**Flashback**_

_Ryoma was packed and ready to leave within the hour. There was a knock on the door and his baka oyaji answered it._

"_Ryoma!" he yelled. "Your friend is here!"_

"_My friend?" Ryoma asked himself before going downstairs. "Hisa? What are you doing here?" Ryoma asked. He grabbed the boy's hand and led him up to his room._

"_I wanted to see you once more before you left. I'm gonna miss you, Ryo." Takahisa said sadly._

"_You will see me again; I'm sure of it." Ryoma said, enveloping the older in a hug. He stepped back and got something out of his bag. "Here. It's not much but when I saw it I thought you would like it, so I bought it for you so you can have something to remind you of me…" Ryoma's nervous rambling was cut off when Takahisa hugged him tightly. "I love it! Thank you, Ryoma." He said softly, laying his head on top of Roma's._

_Ryoma hugged him just as tightly. "I'm really going to miss you, Hisa." Ryoma whispered._

"_I know. I will to." Takahisa whispered softly._

"_Ryoma! It's time to go!" His oyaji yelled up the stairs, effectively ruining the moment. The two embracing teens jumped apart and Ryoma yelled, "Ok oyaji!" in annoyance._

"_Well, I guess this is goodbye then." Ryoma said sadly._

"_Only for now, Ryo love. We will definitely see each other again; you're too stubborn for us not to. Until then," Takahisa put on the choker necklace Ryoma had just given him and he stepped up to Ryoma. He bent down and kissed him on the cheek, lingering there to whisper, "You're in my thoughts and I will never forget you."_

_Takahisa stepped back and smiled at the light blush dusting his friend's face. "Good luck, Ryo love!" he said in a normal tone, striding out the door and out of his house, leaving Ryoma standing there still in shock._

_Slowly, he raised a hand to his cheek and smiled._

_**End Flashback**_

"That was also the first day that you called me Hisa." Kajimoto said with a fond smile.

Ryoma's cheeks pinkened. "I thought it suited you. I can stop if you want?" Ryoma offered, hoping that he wouldn't take the offer.

"No, you can keep it. I like it." Kajimoto said, ruffling Ryoma's hair. "Besides I made my own nickname for you so it evens out." Ryoma scowled and tried to flatten his hair out while Kajimoto laughed.

"You want to play a match? It's been so long since I've played tennis." Ryoma said with a smile. His friend didn't need to know that in two days he would be starting at Seigaku and playing tennis all the time.

"Sure, if I can borrow one of your rackets. I've wanted to play a match with you since you first told me that you played tennis." Kajimoto said agreeably.

Ryoma smirked. "Sure."

He got him one of his rackets and they walked to the middle of the court.

"Rough or Smooth?" Ryoma said, racket in hand and sly smirk on his face.

**A/n. And that's all folks! Slightly longer chapter this time but it took on a mind of its own and didn't want to end. So you got to meet another of Ryoma's friends in this chapter. You might even get to meet one or two more next chapter. I haven't decided yet.**

**I was asked if this would be an OT6. The answer is no. Not all of the people in Ryoma's 'harem', if you will, will be from the OT6 pairing.**

**Anyway, please review with your comments!**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/n. Thank you all for your reviews. It makes me so happy to see such encouraging responses and I am glad that you all like this story. It's taken awhile but I've finally got this chapter out! I hope you like this one as much as the others!**

"Damn Ryo! You're still as strong as ever!" Kajimoto said. He was collapsed on his side of the tennis court, sweating heavily and breathing hard. Ryoma was standing by the net on his side and smirking. His skin glowed faintly from sweat but his breathing was even.

"Maybe you just got worse, Hisa?" Ryoma teased.

Kajimoto did the mature thing and stuck his tongue out at Ryoma. "You could have gone easy on me. Losing 6 games to 1 is just plain humiliating." He sulked.

Ryoma laughed. "Then you should get better." He said, his golden eyes dancing in the sunlight.

"Hush you." Kajimoto said with a smile that quickly turned into a pout when he saw the condition of his friend. ""How is it that I sweat horribly and you glow? That isn't fair!"

"Life isn't fair, dear Hisa." Ryoma taunted with a smirk.

"Brat." Kajimoto huffed.

"You know, you're the second person to say that to me in as many days." Ryoma said thoughtfully.

"Then maybe it would sink into your thick skull and you wouldn't act like one all the time." Kajimoto said teasingly.

"I don't act like one. It is not my fault that you lesser people do not understand my speech." **(Remind you of anyone, ahn?)** Ryoma said in a haughty tone before bursting out laughing.

Kajimoto started laughing and soon the two were propped against each other, gasping for breath. Once the laughter had died down, Kajimoto looked at his watch. He cursed when he saw the time.

"I'm sorry Ryo love, I have to go. I was supposed to be at the courts at Jyousei Shounen 15 minutes ago." Kajimoto said regretfully.

Ryoma became slightly worried about his friend but he kept his cocky mask in place. "You better hurry then. Wouldn't want your pretty face to get smashed or something for being late." Ryoma said seemingly mocking.

"You think my face is pretty?" Kajimoto said with a stupid grin on his face.

Ryoma blushed lightly and scowled. "So not the point Hisa. No get out of here before I smash your face instead." He threatened.

"Whatever Ryo. You know you love me." Kajimoto said smirking. He winked and left the tennis courts. Ryoma scowled at his retreating back and started putting his stuff away. He got all of his things put into his bag, including his cap because he didn't really feel like putting it back on, when he was interrupted by a voice.

"Pretty interesting match you had going."

Ryoma whirled around, heart beating a mile a minute, to see a boy no more than three years older than him standing there. He had short slightly spiky coffee colored hair, dark soulful blue eyes, and an angular face. He was smiling softly and his eyes gleamed in excitement.

"Domo…demo who are you? I don't think I remember seeing you before." Ryoma asked lightly.

"My name is Oshitari Kenya! I got to Shitenhouji so it's not surprising that we haven't met before. No need to ask who you are as there is only one person who you could be. You must be Echizen Ryoma!" Kenya said, talking fast in his excitement.

"That's me but how do you know that if we haven't ever met before?" Ryoma asked suspiciously.

"One of my friends talks about you quite a bit. He's really quiet but he blossoms when he mentions something about you. His name is Zaizen Hikaru and he's a year younger than me." Kenya said happily.

"OH! How is Zai-kun? It's been a long time since I last saw him." Ryoma said, a happy smile appearing on his face for a moment.

"Zai-kun?" Kenya asked blankly before a light went off over his head. "Oh you mean Zaizen! He's great! He just joined the tennis team a few months ago so Shiraishi buchou is still helping him get adjusted, but he will be good in no time!" Kenya stopped as he saw the soft look on his new friend's face.

"Raishi is here too? He goes to the same school as you and Zai-kun?" Ryoma asked incredulously. At Kenya's blank look, Ryoma blushed a bit and elaborated, "I guess you know him as your buchou."

"OH okay yeah. Shiraishi buchou is a year older than me. I didn't know that you guys knew each other but I guess that explains a little bit then." Kenya said thoughtfully.

"What do you mean by explains things?" Ryoma asked curiously.

"Buchou sometimes gets spacey with this sad look in his eyes. We always thought he was thinking about a girl but I guess not!" Kenya explained.

"Hmmm." Ryoma hummed thoughtfully.

"My team is supposed to be getting together at Kawamura Sushi in ten minutes and I don't know where that is. Could you show me?" Kenya asked with wide eyes once he noticed the time.

"If you wish." Ryoma said with a shrug. It was still early and he didn't have to be home for a few hours still. He kind of liked this Kenya guy.

"Domo! I really appreciate it! I hope I'm not causing you any trouble?" Kenya asked a little bit worried.

"If it was any trouble then I wouldn't have agreed to show you in the first place." Ryoma said with a smirk as he picked up his tennis bag and they started walking down the road.

Kenya huffed. "Brat." He said and ruffled Ryoma's hair.

"OI! What is it with people messing with my hair?" Ryoma asked irritably as he fixed his hair.

"It's because you are so adorable!" Kenya said with a laugh.

"I am most certainly not adorable!" Ryoma said angrily.

"Of course not Ryoma." Kenya said agreeably, not feeling up to arguing with the young man. He started when Ryoma's hand jerked on his own.

"We're here, Oshitari-senpai." Ryoma said at Kenya's questioning look. He turned to leave when the hand still entwined in his own tugged him back.

"Call me Kenya and please don't go. You should at least stay and eat with us. It will be our treat." Kenya said with a slightly pleading smile.

"Ok if you want me to." Ryoma said. Ryoma was many things but he was not someone to give up free food.

"Great and I'm sure buchou and Zaizen will like to see you again!" The Speed Star of Naniwa said before tugging Ryoma into the restaurant by their interlocked hands.

"Hey Guys!" Kenya called out to the group sitting in the back room.

"Oshitari-senpai! You didn't get lost! That's a miracle! Did an angel smile down at you or something?" a boy who could only be Ryoma's friend Zaizen asked.

Kenya laughed sheepishly. "I'm not too sure about angel, but…I had help getting here." Kenya said before casually bringing Ryoma up to stand next to him. "This is…" but he was interrupted.

"Echizen Ryoma!" two voices chimed in sync.

"You know this boy?" a teenager with a red ribbon mask tied around his eyes asked curiously.

"Of course! I haven't seen him for six years though!" Zaizen said, his eyes sparkling happily.

"I haven't seen him in four years." Shiraishi spoke up.

They both walked up and grabbed Ryoma in a tight hug. Ryoma hesitantly wrapped his arms around the both of them and smiled. "It's good to see you guys." He said softly.

"Back at you, Zen-chan." Zaizen said happily.

Shiraishi agreed and said, "Ah Ecstasy!"

Ryoma pulled slightly away while Shiraishi's team mates laughed in the background. "When on Earth did you develop that saying?" he asked incredulously.

"A few months ago." Shiraishi said with a light blush on his handsome features.

Ryoma sighed. "Always the jokester, huh Raishi?"

"You know it!" he said sending a roguish wink in Ryoma's direction.

Ryoma rolled his eyes and plopped down at the table, Shiraishi and Zaizen sitting on either side of him. "Let's get some food and you guys can begin the Spanish Inquisition when we are done eating." Ryoma said airily.

The others rolled their eyes at the exasperated teen and took places at the table. They all had the undeniable feeling that, though this was the first, it was definitely not the last time they would see Echizen Ryoma.

**A/n. And we are done! We got to see more interaction with Ryoma and his friends and a little interaction with someone who will not be a part of Ryoma's harem. Please review my dear readers! Everyone that does not review gets a shot glass of Inui's newest most deadly juice! DUN DUN DUUUUN! **

…

**Just kidding! **

**Anyway, until next time minna!**

**Ja ne! **


	5. Chapter 5

**A/n. Well, I wasn't planning on updating this but…it's Ryoma's birthday so I must update as a birthday gift for him. HAPPY BIRTHDAY RYOMA-KUN! **

**Anyway, I don't own Prince of Tennis (unfortunately). I hope everyone has a Happy Christmas and a great New Year if I don't update before then!**

"So why don't you introduce me to the rest of your team then?" Ryoma asked, deciding to get the questioning started.

"Oh sure. You already know Zaizen already and you know Kenya. This is Tooyama Kintaro, Koishikawa Kenjiro, Chitose Senri, Ishida Gin, Konjiki Koharu, and Hitoji Yuuji." Shiraishi said.

"Pleasure." Ryoma said with a nod.

"So Zen-chan, did you just get done with your tour?" Zaizen asked curiously.

"Hai. I was touring for boxing in France." Ryoma said with a tired sigh.

"So you got to see some pretty French ladies then?" the boy that had been introduced as Kenjiro asked.

"One of them had a moustache." Ryoma said flatly.

"Ugh gross! France must allow some pretty weird things." Kintaro said, looking faintly green.

Ryoma laughed. "You sound just like Goku."

Shiraishi looked his best friend over. Ryoma had changed a lot in the four years since he had seen him. Where he was once short and desperate to fade into the background, Ryoma was now around the same height as Zaizen and oozed confidence. His body was lithe and you could see his sharply defined twelve-pack through his form-fitting black shirt.

"You definitely haven't changed much since I last saw you." Ryoma said, looking Shiraishi up and down.

"On the contrary, you've changed quite a bit from the short brat I remember making a name for himself in Brazil in soccer." Shiraishi countered, grinning widely at his best friend's scowl at being called short.

"How did you meet him, Zaizen?" Chitose asked.

Zaizen smiled softly. "It was six years ago in… Australia, I believe. He was learning beach volleyball at the time. Only nine years old and he was slamming it over the net right past people who were pros." Zaizen said, reminiscing in his memories.

"Wow Echizen! You've been to a lot of places, haven't you?" Koharu said, being uncharacteristically serious and looking at Ryoma in wonder.

"The name's Ryoma, not Echizen; it makes me feel old if you call me by my last name. I forgot that that is the way it's done here in Japan." Ryoma said, scrunching his nose which was undeniably cute in Shiraishi and Zaizen's opinion. "But to answer your question, yeah I've been all over the world. After this next tour, I will be on my way to the Philippines for surfing."

"What sport are you doing for this tour? I'm assuming that you are in Japan for this next sport." Shiraishi said.

"I'm actually going to school here too. I can't say the sport though because oyaji wants it to be a secret until the last minute. You know how he is." Ryoma said with an eye roll.

"How old were you when you first started touring?" Kintaro asked excitedly. Here was someone who was internationally famous for multiple sports and Ryoma was his age!

"I was seven when I toured my first sport but I guess you could say that my sports career first started when I was six and learning tennis." Ryoma said with a fond smile.

It was those days that he looked back on the most. There had been no tours or paparazzi. It had been just him, his mom and his dad. He could play a sport freely without the whole world analyzing his movements. Sure he got to see the world, but all of his actions were broadcasted to the world. He didn't really get a lot of time to hang out with his baka oyaji, even though the man annoyed him to death.

"So young." Kenya commented breathlessly. It was amazing to think that this teenager was touring the world when most kids were in school dreaming about being famous when they got older. This teen was truly living most guys' dream.

Ryoma shrugged. ""I guess. I just haven't really thought of it like that."

"What school will you be attending?" Gin asked.

"I will be going to Seishun Gakuen. The first day of school is tomorrow actually." Ryoma said after a moment's hesitation. He didn't see any harm in telling them which school he would be at. It's not like his school would give them any indication of what sport he was touring this time anyway.

"They are so lucky! I wish that you were going to school with us!" Yuuji whined, only half-joking.

"Shitenhouji is the Naniwa district right?" Ryoma asked.

"Yeah that's right. How did you know that we go to Shitenhouji?" Kenjiro asked.

Ryoma nodded towards Kenya. "Kenya told me when he explained about your team being here. That's also how I knew that Raishi and Zai-kun would be here." Ryoma explained with a careless shrug.

"Raishi? Zai-kun?" the team asked.

Ryoma blushed a faint pink. "I've called them that since I met them. They haven't said that they don't like it but I could call them by their actual names if it makes you guys uncomfortable." Ryoma offered obliviously.

"No it's alright. We don't mind, really." Koharu said after Zaizen and his buchou had shot them all a nasty look, which had Chitose smiling in amusement. So his friends had a crush on the sports star? This will be interesting.

"It wouldn't be the same without the nicknames, would it Bello?" Shiraishi said softly with a glint in his eye as he saw the blush that spread over Ryoma's face. Ryoma always blushed whenever Shiraishi called him that.

"Buchou, I didn't know that you could speak Italian?" Chitose said with a small smile.

"That was Italian? What does it mean?" Kintaro asked quickly.

"It means beautiful." Chitose explained.

The team all looked shocked. "Is there something you aren't telling us, buchou?" Yuuji asked with a glint of mischief in his eye.

"Yeah like perhaps that you are crushing on Ryoma?" Koharu said, catching on to what his doubles partner was doing.

Shiraishi immediately blushed and sputtered. "O-of course not. I've called him that since I met him. I will most likely always call him that."

"Are you sure?" the two asked with a suggestive tone.

Shiraishi turned an even deeper red while Ryoma was trying to suppress a smile.

"Okay that's enough you two. Leave buchou alone." Kenya said while grinning hugely. "There will be plenty of time to tease him and Zaizen both later." He said with a smirk.

Shiraishi and Zaizen groaned.

"On that note, I think I need to be going. Oyaji will be wondering where I am. Good luck with the vultures." He told his two childhood friends. "It was great meeting you all. I would love to see you guys again and maybe get together sometime." Ryoma said to the others.

He stood up from his chair, hugged Shiraishi and Zaizen and lightly kissed their cheek before walking out of the restaurant, gracefully swinging his hips.

"Looks like buchou isn't the only one who's got a crush." Kenya commented idly, looking at the two blushing and dazed tennis players staring at Ryoma leaving the building.

**A/n. And that's it! I hope that you like it. I don't know if I have ever mentioned this before but this story is set three years after the anime. In Prince of Tennis, I believe that Ryoma is 12 but in my story he is 15.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Hola mis amigas y amigos! Que pasa?**

**Sorry, I just got done doing my Spanish II homework so I guess you could say that I was in a Spanish mood. I was so glad to see that I got a review on this story so I decided that I had to update this. I realize that this story is going really slowly but I don't want to move too fast. **

**Please enjoy this chapter and let me know your thoughts!**

_The Next Morning_

"Ryoma! It's time to get up! It's your first day of school today." Rinko called up the stairs in a cheerful voice.

Ryoma groaned loudly and promptly imitated an ostrich by putting his head under his pillow. "Five more minutes." His muffled voice came sleepily.

"Ryoma Echizen! If you don't get out of bed and get ready for school this instant, I will get your father!" Rinko threatened, barely suppressing her amusement when Ryoma came bolting down the stairs, showered and dressed twenty minutes later.

"There is no need to be that way, jeez!" Ryoma explained. He hated when his oyaji woke him up because it usually ended with a bucket of ice being thrown on him.

"Are you excited to be back in Japan?" Rinko asked, putting a plate of pancakes in front of Ryoma as he sat at the table.

Ryoma shrugged and glared at the pancakes before picking his fork up and eating quietly. Rinko smiled fondly at her son and went back in the kitchen to wash the dishes she had used.

Around ten minutes later, Ryoma came in the kitchen carrying his plate with his tennis bag slung over his shoulder. "I've gotta go or I will be late."

"Alright sweetie. Have a good day and stay out of trouble." Rinko called to her son's retreating figure.

"Che." He answered making her laugh and shake her head.

Ryoma took a deep breath and began walking the familiar route to Seishun Gakuen. His oyaji had taken him on this route at least ten times to make sure he knew how to get to the school. As he was walking, a spiky-haired teen rode past frantically on a bicycle, almost knocking Ryoma to the ground.

"Sorry!" the teen called over his shoulder, already almost a block away.

"Che." Ryoma muttered, getting up and dusting himself off.

The rest of the walk was uneventful and Ryoma finally made it to the school. He walked through the gates and looked to his right, where the distinctive sounds of tennis were echoing to him. He saw a bunch of people practicing and decided to scope out the players.

He pulled his sunglasses off of the top of his head and slid them on his nose. The hood of his black sweatshirt came up and he stuck his hands in the pockets of his holey faded jeans. Walking over to the tennis courts, he heard someone's voice above the tennis noises.

"You freshmen will be picking the balls up for us senpai. That's all you are good for. If you are lucky, we might even use you guys as target practice!" a brunette guy said to a bunch of scared-looking freshmen. The kid had a mean look to him with cruel brown eyes and brown hair that brushed his collar. He wore a green sweatband around his forehead.

"Oi!" Ryoma called, causing the older teen and his lackeys to face him. "Why don't you leave the freshmen alone, hmm? I'm sure you have better things to be doing than mess around with your kohai; like practicing for instance." He said casually.

"Why you little…!" the brunette yelled angrily, advancing on Ryoma with a fist in the air. "If you think you're so great then let's have a match. If I win, then I get to use you as my target practice. And if you win, as unlikely as that is, then I will leave the ickle freshmen alone. Sound good?" the teen asked.

"Arai, are you sure that this is okay?" one of the others with the kid, Arai, asked worriedly.

"I can handle this kid real quick and then we can get back to these freshmen." Arai said with a malicious look directed at the still cowering boys.

"So your name's Arai then. Well Arai, I accept your terms." Ryoma said with a wave of his hand, gesturing to the court directly behind him.

"You're on!" Arai said with a smirk, walking to the court with his racket in hand.

The freshmen watched as Ryoma walked to the bench to out his things down. He took out a red racket and tested the strings before walking to the other side of the court, opposite of Arai.

"Katsuo, what should we do?" one of the freshmen asked softly, his usually loud voice subdued from fear.

"Horio, go and get the regulars. Kachiro and I will stay here and watch the match. Hurry and tell them what is going on; I think they need to see this." Katsuo said, not taking his eyes off of the tennis court.

Horio nodded and ran off in the direction of the school. Kachiro watched him go before turning his attention back to the courts, where the match had already started.

"Is that all you've got?" Ryoma asked the panting Arai. "I expected more from you for some reason. I guess I will just have to finish this quickly then. What a pity." Ryoma said boredly. The score was already 4-0 to Ryoma.

"What's going on here?" a voice said.

Kachiro and Katsuo turned around and saw the regulars, who had ran to the courts as soon as Horio had explained the situation.

"You gotta see this, senpai! Arai-senpai was threatening us and this kid just comes up to him and told him to go find something else to do other than pick on freshmen so Arai challenged him to a match." Kachiro said in an awestruck voice.

"He never learns, does he? You can't pick on your kohai, you just can't." a violet eyes teen said with a sigh.

"What is the score?" a hyperactive teen asked with interest.

"The score is currently 4-0 against Arai, Kikumaru-senpai." Katsuo said, smiling at his senpai's look of disbelief.

"Do you know who this kid is?" the captain asked.

"No Tezuka buchou. We've never seen him before. We don't even know what he looks like; he had the hood up and the sunglasses on when he came here." Horio said breathlessly, having just gotten there after falling behind the regulars when they ran to the courts.

"Mada mada dane, Arai." Ryoma said as he smashed the ball back to his opponent's side and scoring the winning point, making the game end at 6-0 in his favor.

Arai fell on the ground panting harshly. He looked up at his opponent with disbelief. "How are you not tired? You aren't even breathing hard!" he exclaimed.

"Wait a second! I know that phrase!" Syusuke said, eyes sliding open and narrowing on the hooded figure. "Ry-kun! Is that you?" he called out in shock.

"There's no hiding anything from you, is there Syu?" Ryoma said with a resigned sigh. He lowered his hood and propped his sunglasses on top of his head.

"Ochibi!" Kikumaru shouted happily. He ran and jumped on Ryoma's back, causing him to stagger a bit before grabbing on to the back of Kikumaru's thighs to keep him from falling.

"Why do you insist on calling me that? I'm taller than you are, Kiku!" Ryoma protested.

"You were so small when I met you. You will always be Ochibi, Ochibi!" Kikumaru exclaimed.

Ryoma sighed and let go of Kikumaru's thighs. Kikumaru slid down Ryoma's back and dropped to his feet, arms wrapped around Ryoma's slim waist.

"Oi Eiji! Don't hog Ry-kun! Let me see him too!" Syusuke called, running up to the pair. Kikumaru let go and Fuji smiled happily before picking Ryoma up and spinning him around a few times. Both of them were laughing freely.

"Hello to you too, Syu." Ryoma said drily.

"It's been eight years, Ry-kun." Syusuke pouted. "I've missed my Ry-kun!"

Ryoma rolled his eyes but a smile crept across his face. Syusuke set Ryoma down but wrapped his arms around Ryoma in a tight hug. "I've missed you too Syu." He whispered in Syusuke's ear, causing a pleasant shiver to travel down Syusuke's spine.

"Who is this guy Fuji-senpai?" the spiky haired teen asked.

"Ryoma Echizen at your service." Ryoma said, giving an exaggerated bow that made Kikumaru laugh and Syusuke to snort and smile.

Everyone's mouth dropped open in shock. They could not believe that THE Ryoma Echizen was at their school…and he seemed to know Kikumaru and Fuji!

**That's it for this one! Syusuke's nickname for Ryoma is pronounced like Rye bread; just thought I would let you know.**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/n. Here is a shout-out to hprareslashfan for requesting an update. Sorry for not updating last night but I hope this chapter makes up for it!**

"What are you doing here?" Syusuke asked incredulously, still not quite believing that Ryoma was standing in front of him after so long.

Ryoma smirked. "Well…you see…I'm the newest student here at Seigaku."

There was a pause and then…"YAY! OCHIBI IS COMING HERE!" Eiji yelled, happily bouncing around before tackling Ryoma again.

"Kiku!" Ryoma protested, rolling his eyes.

"Which sport?" Syusuke asked, running through all the sports that he's already done and matching them up with the sports offered at Seigaku.

"Tennis." Ryoma said, smirking widely and laughing when Syusuke joined Eiji in the Death Hug.

"So we get to play each other again!" he exclaimed.

"This time we will be on the same team, my dear Syu. We won't have to compete against each other." Ryoma said smiling fondly as he remembered the first time he met Syu and his brother.

"Fuji-senpai, you and Kikumaru-senpai know Ryoma Echizen?" the violet eyed youth asked incredulously.

"We met around eight years ago. It was a curling tournament and I made it to the finals. My opponent was Ry-kun." Syusuke smiled, happily remembering that day.

"And you won, right?" the same teen asked, a cocky note in his voice.

"I lost horribly." Syusuke said cheerfully. "So then I went up to the boy who beat me…he was only seven at the time…so cute…but anyway." Syusuke said, clearing his throat. "I asked him his name and kinda followed him around for a bit, dragging Yuuta with me in the process. He went into a hotel that was decorated with cactus and we talked."

"You and your cactus." Ryoma said fondly.

"I have to tell Yuuta! He will be so excited to see you again!" Syusuke exclaimed happily.

"I will come home with you after school today and we can talk more." Ryoma said decisively, perking up at the mention of another one of his friends.

"How do you know Echizen, Eiji?" a boy with bowl cut hair asked.

"My family got tickets to see the big gymnastics tournament in England nine years ago. We went and I saw this young child performing beautifully so I broke away from my family to watch him. He was amazing! I can still remember his whole performance!" Eiji recounted excitedly.

"That was the day he won his first championship for gymnastics." Eiji said proudly. "I was just getting interested in tennis and starting to work on my acrobatics. I was entranced with him so I decided I was going to talk to him."

"You should have seen him. Not much taller than I was at the time with short, shaggy red hair that flopped into his eyes. His wide chocolate eyes had stars in them and there was a bandage across his nose. He was so cute." Ryoma said teasingly, causing a light blush to rise on Eiji's face.

"ANYWAY!" Eiji said loudly before Ryoma could say anything else. "I introduced myself and we talked. You had such a soft voice then. You were really quite shy and you didn't talk a lot. You also weren't nearly as confident then as you are now." Eiji said with a grin.

Ryoma rolled his eyes. "Before I left, I offered to teach him a few tricks."

"Ochibi here taught me everything I know." Eiji revealed happily.

Ryoma blushed but a smile came over his face. "I think that you are giving me too much credit, Kiku. You've developed so many more techniques since then."

"Only because you taught me the basics and how to safely develop new things." Eiji said before a thought came over him. "WAIT?! How would you know about my new techniques? Does that mean you've been watching me?"

"I kept watch over all of my friends. My mother stayed in Japan while my oyaji and I travelled so I gave her a list of names and asked her to record any matches that she could and send them to me." Ryoma said with a shrug. "It's only fair since anybody and everybody can watch what I'm doing and I wanted to see how everybody was doing."

Eiji glomped him again. "You are the best friend ever!"

"Kiku…can't breathe!" Ryoma gasped as he slowly turned blue.

"Sorry." Eiji muttered sheepishly before releasing Ryoma. He took a few grateful gulps of air.

"So are you two going to introduce me to your team mates?" Ryoma asked with a raised eyebrow.

"They are your team mates now, Ry-kun." Syusuke said with a huge grin before sweeping his hand. "These are Kunimitsu Tezuka, Syuichiro Oishi, Takashi Kawamura, Sadaharu Inui, Takeshi Momoshiro, and Kaoru Kaidoh. Minna…this is Ryoma Echizen!" he introduced with an elaborate flourish.

Ryoma nodded at the others and smacked Syusuke on the back of the head.

"Mou Ry-kun! What was that for?" Syusuke said with a pout, surprising the rest of his team mates bar Eiji.

"For being an idiot." Ryoma said drily.

"Um Echizen?" Oishi asked hesitantly.

"You can call me Ryoma you know. Echizen is my baka oyaji." Ryoma said in amusement.

"Right…Ryoma. When did you start touring?" Oishi asked.

"I was six when I started touring. My first sport, however; was tennis but this is the first time I've toured tennis." Ryoma explained.

"So Eiji was the first person you met?" Inui asked, pen poised and at the ready.

"Yup…he was my first friend that I made too. We've already been over how adorable he was when he was younger so there's no need to rehash that." Ryoma said with a teasing grin at Eiji.

"Iie data." Inui muttered, scribbling quickly in his book.

"You just finished your boxing debut, right?" Tezuka asked, remembering his dad mentioning something about an up and coming young boxer.

"Yeah I just flew in from France yesterday." Ryoma agreed.

"You must be so tired then from jet lag! We shouldn't be standing here and bothering you when you should be getting sleep!" Oishi exclaimed, fretting over the sports star.

"I'm fine, really…Oishi, right?" Ryoma asked. At his nod, he continued, "I've dealt with jet lag a lot so I hardly even notice anymore. Besides, I've already played a tennis match and been out with a few of my other friends and their team."

"You've already been playing tennis?" Kaidoh asked with a hiss.

"I don't need to learn this sport. My oyaji and I play tennis in between tours to keep me in top condition. Plus, it was the first sport I learned, even though I didn't tour it." Ryoma explained with a fond smile on his face.

"Who did you play with?" Syusuke asked, feeling a flare of something in his chest.

"Hisa." Ryoma said as if that explained everything.

"And who is that?" Eiji asked, also feeling a slight bit of a strange feeling enter his chest.

"You would know him as Takahisa Kajimoto." Ryoma explained, watching with a smirk as all of their jaws dropped open in shock.

"He's really good! How the hell did you manage to play him when you should be exhausted from jet lag? What was the score?" Momoshiro asked.

"I slept for a bit when I got here so it's not like I was dead on my feet or anything." Ryoma said with an eye roll. They were definitely blowing this way out of proportion. "The score was six games to one in my favor." Ryoma said, savoring their once again shocked looks.

"You seriously beat him so easily?" Syusuke asked incredulously.

Ryoma nodded and decided to tease Syusuke a bit. "Better close your mouth, Syu. Wouldn't want anything flying in it, ne?" he asked mischievously before turning around and walking away just as the morning bell rung.

"Ryo-kun!" he yelled, running off after the teen and picking him up, setting Ryoma on his back once he caught up with him and ignoring his team mate's laughter.

"_It's nice to have you back, Ryoma."_ Syusuke thought with a small smile before his eyes slid shut again and he assumed his normal expression, acting like he didn't currently have a protesting Ryoma clinging to his back.


	8. Chapter 8

**I'm so sorry guys! It's been forever since I last updated this! I've really been in the mood for some Jyushiro/Shunsui/Ichigo fanfiction but I haven't been able to find many and the ones I found…I've already read. I just haven't been in the mood and I've been getting so many projects assigned in school lately and finals are in seven days.**

**You're free to throw rotten tomatoes or anything else you like at me just let me know what I'm getting covered in. **bows head in shame****

**Anyway, here's the new chapter before my rambling gets me killed by angry readers.**

School was really boring for Ryoma. Having toured the world, he knew a multitude of languages and he had gotten some of his education from a few of the finest schools in the world, but school was a necessary evil.

He slept through English, fantasizing about playing tennis the whole time and sleeping halfway through his math class too. The stupid sensei called on Ryoma when he was sleeping, but the look on his face when Ryoma knew the answer was utterly priceless.

Ryoma created a rather toxic looking blue fungus in a test tube in his chemistry class then doodled his way through Health. They were covering sex ed. Did the school honestly think they were that clueless? Ryoma knew what to do; you put Tool A into Slot B and call it good.

He stumbled a bit in physical education because they played floor hockey. Who the hell needs a game like floor hockey anyway? It is incredibly pointless! Ryoma rather thought he was getting the hang of floor hockey by the end of the period, despite the student hobbling of the gym floor because Ryoma had just whacked him in the sin when he swung the stick back to hit the puck.

"Is school always this ridiculous?" Ryoma sighed as he sat down for lunch on the roof with the tennis regulars.

"So I take it your day hasn't been good?" Syusuke asked in amusement.

"I slept in English, slept halfway through math before having to make the teacher look like a fool, had to sit through sex ed then played freakin' floor hockey in physical education. What do you think?" Ryoma asked flatly. "The only highlight was Chemistry when I made a blue fungus in a test tube."

"Blue?" Kawamura asked incredulously. "Aren't fungi typically green?"

Ryoma just gave him a blank look and Oishi started fretting. "That could be really dangerous! How in Kami's name did you make it _blue_ anyway? You really should be more careful. You aren't feeling lightheaded or anything, are you?"

"I'm fine, Oishi. You worry too much. It was rather interesting actually. I'm fairly certain I actually saw it move before the period ended." Ryoma said thoughtfully.

Everyone except Syusuke gave Ryoma shocked stairs. Syusuke's eyes sparkled with amusement as he gave Ryoma a fond look.

"It _moved_?" Eiji asked aghast.

Ryoma smirked at him. "Of course. That makes it more interesting. I wanted to keep it but sensei wouldn't let me; said something about it needing to be monitored or something." Ryoma pouted.

The others directed weird looks at Ryoma and he laughed. "You guys are looking at me like I'm weird or something." He turned to Syusuke. "Will you get me a blue fungus?"

"Ryoma." Syusuke said hesitantly. "What do you need a blue fungus for?"

"I want one." He said, turning his puppy eyes on full blast. "Please Syu!"

Syusuke's cerulean eyes widened. He had never seen a more adorable sight. "Ryoma…" he said slowly then sighed. "Fine."

Ryoma smiled brilliantly. "You're the best, Syu!" he jumped on Syusuke and hugged him happily before getting up. "I better go. I have art next and I hear that we are starting to paint today. I want to get a good seat. Later!"

Ryoma walked out the door and casually waved over his shoulder. The tennis regulars blinked and exchanged looks.

"What just happened?" Kaidoh asked in confusion.

"I'm not too sure…" Tezuka said reflectively.

"Well…we learned that Fuji-senpai is a total softie when it comes to Ryoma." Momo said with a large grin.

"I dare you to try and resist the puppy dog eyes. It's impossible!" he defended amidst chuckles.

**Break***Break***Break***Break***Break***Break***Br eak**

Whoever had told Ryoma that the art class would be starting painting was absolutely correct. Right after the bell rang, the sensei had explained to them their project and had given them a piece of paper to brainstorm ideas on and start planning their painting.

Already having something in mind, Ryoma quickly wrote down some details on the piece of paper and started mentally going through a list of necessary materials.

He asked the sensei what size of paper they would be given and, after explaining a bit of his idea to his sensei, Ryoma was given a three foot piece of paper.

Smiling to himself, Ryoma sat down and painstakingly began drawing the outline of a fading road.

**Break***Break***Break***Break***Break***Break***Br eak**

After art had been study hall. Ryoma slept through that period too, although he made sure to keep his giant scroll from art close to him. If they didn't want people sleeping, then they shouldn't have put such comfortable couches in the school's library!

His final period was history. Not many people knew this about Ryoma, but he was a history buff. History absolutely fascinated him so it was not hard to stay awake in that class. He threw himself into class discussions and started some good debates. Sensei had actually held him back for a few minutes after class to tell him how knowledgeable he was and how glad he was that Ryoma was in his class!

Then it was finally time to leave. Ryoma caught up with Syusuke at his locker in the hallway connected to the hallway that Ryoma's locker was in.

"Are you ready to go, Ry-kun?" Syusuke asked once he had gotten everything he needed from his locker.

"Think you have enough stuff there, Syu? Are you sure that you want to leave your locker here or would you rather take it with you?" Ryoma asked drily, throwing a pointed look at all the stuff Syusuke was holding.

"I have a lot of projects due." Syusuke said with a shrug. "In my honors English, we have to take to poems by these two authors and rewrite them, changing some words to make it completely different. I have a seven to ten page research paper due in Ancient History. There's a huge vocab packet due in Geography and some book work due for math."

"What on Earth did you do in Study Hall?" Ryoma said eyes wide with shock.

"Took a leaf out of your book and slept." Syusuke said with an innocent smile. "It was rather refreshing."

"Syu." Ryoma groaned in exasperation. "I can take a look at all of it and see if I could help you with it. I may have learned some of this while I was travelling."

"Ok." Syusuke agreed before smiling happily. "I can't wait for Yuuta to see you! He will be so happy."

"Why? It's just me. It's not like I'm that important or anything." Ryoma mumbled. Sure he was an international sports star but that didn't mean he was important or anything.

"You are important, Ry-kun. You are our friend and that makes you important to us. We missed you while you were touring." Syusuke said, serious eyes sliding open to pierce Ryoma.

"Whatever you say." Ryoma muttered and that was the end of their conversation until they got to Syusuke's house. Ryoma couldn't help but to smile a bit. He couldn't wait to see how much his Yuu-kun had changed!


	9. Sorry guys!

**Hey guys! So I got a review from a guest on Reading with the Heroes of Chaos saying that they reported me for stealing Rick Riordan's work. I am now in the process of moving my stories to Archive of Our Own. I'm sorry if this is an inconvenience to you but I've found a lot of things on there that I like a lot better than this site. I just don't want to go through the same thing that IkutoisSmexy did.**

**Please PM me if you have any questions. You can find me under the same name on Archive of Our Own and I've already posted a slightly revised edition of the first chapter of Reading with the Heroes of Chaos and the first chapter of this story there. This account will still be open for beta reading (so if you know of anyone that could use one...) and for reading others' stories. I wish you all the best and this is me posting for probably one of the last times on this website.**

**If you make the switch to Archive of Our Own, I swear you won't regret it! (They definitely don't just delete your stories then send you a warning after it's already done! And they have a lot less rules as to what you can and cannot post!)**

**Just take the spaces out but the link to Archive of Our Own is: www. archiveofourown .org **

**Bye guys!**


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